[saket77]

Hello Friends,

Posting this thread with the risk of being killed by BHPians but still I dare test the depth of water.

To begin with, I live in a relatively smaller city. Covering a distance of 25-30 kms, you can get from one end to the other end of our city. My work place is about 8 kms from my home, which for a city like ours is considered far enough!

I see people completing 50K kms in a span of 2-3 years in their new cars and I wonder how I admit that my own car's running is pretty low, but the fact is that it has done only 26K kms in 10 years There are many reasons behind this too as I was away from home for about 4 years & my Dad did not drive it too much etc, etc. but the car is flawless and as lively as new. All services/ oil change/ Tyres change have been done within stipulated time frames and I am a car maniac having more obsession than enthusiasm!

So, here's is my confession:

Car: 2002 (Dec.) Zen Mpfi
Years: 10+
Kms on Odo: ~26,000

Reasons:

1. Small City: Not much places to drive around
2. 6 working days, so again not much time to drive.
3. I find my bike more convenient due to traffic jams & parking issues in the city.
4. Less of city driving, most of the kms have been munched on the highways.
5. I ride to my work rather than drive due to pathetic evening traffic.


I am sure that there will be many tbhpians among us who find themselves in similar situations. & they are stuck with old 'new' cars with low mileage on the odo. Please share your experiences. Please share genuine low readings and not rolled over/ tampered/ bad odo readings.

PS: We sold our previous car Fiat 1100D with 75K on the odo.

[CARDEEP]

This is a good thread, where we can discuss low mileage cars & the SWOT analysis (if one could recall properly).

My Santro Xing was bought on 23 Oct 2003, & from that day to Jul-09, we had barely managed 25K kms over 5.75 years. The main reason for the same was initial days hesitation (read fear), followed by office located within 6 kms of my South Delhi residence, & occasional bike rides to office.

By the time my car was converted to CNG in almost 2 years back, it had covered 45k kms, mainly because we had shifted to Shalimar Bagh, North Delhi in Jul-09, thereby increasing the distance to office to 35 kms (one way), & later my current location Faridabad, Haryana (Noida office distance reduced to 20-22 kms one way). Again my bike has helped me to reduce the travelling time & cost (pre-CNG days), but still have managed approx 75k kms on the odo.

... And the car still continues run beautifully with good performance & rattles only on moonscape. I believe by the end of this year I would be nearing 90k kms on the odo & may be there would be clutch change only. But, I wish people riding/ driving on road had more brains these days , as at times it is difficult to say who is a sane driver.

[saket77]

Now that Cardeep has added a new dimension to the thread, we will also be discussing the drawbacks & advantages of having old cars with low odo readings. Also, its said that cars which are not driven much develop mechanical problems pre-maturely.

However, on the other hand, there is a parallel discussion as well that whether a newer car with high mileage or an old car with lower mileage is a better buy in the used car market. So, a SWOT analysis is indeed on the cards!

So, gentlemen, let the arguments begin!

[hellmet]

And I thought I was the one with low mileage. My colleagues with diesel cars have all done 30K+ in 2 years and I only managed to do 15K in nearly 3 years on my petrol car. The reasons being preference to motorbike over car due to traffic and lack of motivation to drive to other part of city for food and entertainment. My office is also so far from home it is cheaper to ride than to drive a petrol.

[ACM]

Our i10 AT is the third car at home and mainly for my better half. We have managed just 2,500 kms in 1.4 years since we bought it. Estimate it will take more than 5 years to cross 10,000 kms.

[riturajsharma19]

I shamefully admit - only 9k kms on my close to 2-year old Punto mjd. I should have clearly chosen a petrol vehicle. I drive my car only on weekends as I use office transport for my daily commute to work.

[tharian]

A good topic saket77.

I thought my dad's Swift has one of the lowest odo reading. After reading the other cars on this thread I am a bit better(in terms of odo reading).

Ours is a 2005 Swift Lxi bought off the first lot which has run around 37k in just short of 8 years. The reasons are few. The first couple of years, the car was used for just weekends since my dad took time to adjust to the big car from years of driving the 800, which he still was using on weekdays until it came to me.
The other reason being, his clinic is just a km from home which means around 4 kms per day of to and fro and few extra on a Sunday.
The car had done just two long trips and one short trip.

I agree that cars that have run the right amount in these many years, which according to me would be an average of 10k per year for a petrol car( this is according to my driving time/year) which should have been around close to 80k kms instead of 37k, would have a better running engine than a one which has been idle or just run for short distance everyday.

I am concluding this from our Swift and nothing else and it can be otherwise too.

The power delivery is quite rough on our car and since I have not driven another old generation Swift, I am not sure if the car has the full power it is supposed to either. The a/c condensor was replaced last year. The tires have lasted although its not certified anymore for high speed/long distance. Mileage is dismissal. From the last I drove , the engine was knocking in almost all gears, for which I wanted to a decarbonizing and changed plans when I read the thread on de-carbonizing on t-bhp and now it seems to have reduced by itself. There is a light clutch jerk as well when moving from standstill or slow speed.
Most of these I blame the A.S.S which we give the car to who I feel are not doing a complete job.

For me, cranking a car , driving for a km, left off for few hours and again run for a km, twice a day is a torture. Obviously I cannot do anything and ask can't my dad to take a walk

[jaibir]

My 2008 swift diesel has done only 11k km. What was supposed to be a 20km/day commute turned into a 2km/day commute shortly after I bought it. Till 5 months back, it had still only done 8.5k. After the move to Bangalore, I've started driving a lot more but still only do 500-600km/month.

I dont really regret getting the diesel though - the main reason I bought it over the petrol was the face that it was much more fun to drive compared to old petrol power plant the Swift used to come with then.

[liferocks]

Well definitely its a nice thread, been started here. We all are passionate about cars but it does not always mean more Kms on the odometer.
In my case my 2005 Hyundai Accent has covered 38000kms till date.
Few reasons are -
1. A major part of 2005-2006 was spent outside Delhi.
2. My father was not very keen driving it since he was much more at ease on his Maruti 800.
3. My work does not require me to drive down. I get transport facilities.
4. Had 3 cars at home, so even that reduced my Accent's workload.
5. Wife does not drive so when I am not around, radio taxis help.

However all the services were done as per schedule. It still runs like new and due for a tyre change anytime next week.

regards

[audioholic]

Usually our cars have low running. Reason is because my father and mother have executive pick up for work and my college is just a km away from house. In order to pile up some distance on the ODO, my dad drives both cars to office once in a week. Weekends both cars will be used.

Omni - Brought in 2003 brand new, sold in 2012 with 51k on the odo.

SX4 - Brought brand new in 2009, and has just 22k kms on the odo.

WagonR - Brought brand new in 2012, currently at 8500kms.

[PNTLovesNano]

My Alto has done 8000 kms since its purchase 20 months ago. Thanks to two trips to Chennai and one to native town Sandur, it has reached this figure. This was always supposed to be this way only as I have earlier used bike and now company cab to commute. Alto is still a fab car to drive in the city limits and the occasional outstation trip. However, at any time only 4 people are comfortable in the car. With 50%AC, I get nearly 16kmpl in Bangalore city traffic, and on highways it returns 20kmpl. So, overall happy with the car

[n_aditya]

My humble M800 stands at 49,000kms on the clock in ten years. My Esteem which was sold in Jan this year had clocked 65,000 kms (IIRC) in 10.5 years.

While i have replaced the esteem with the Ritz ZDi, the M800 has been lying idle ever since. My wife drives a bit and has a DL too but is not confident driving in Blore. Plan is to get her accustomed to Blore traffic and then dispose the 800.

[mmxylorider]

My Estilo is about 22K kms/4.5 yrs old - attributed to the 40K/3.5 Yrs Xylo. Diesel rocks!

Wifey takes the Estilo out once in a while for the grocery run within the city and I take it to work infrequently just to experience the petrol smoothness and perform some high rev gear changes. It hasn't been outside the city limits for months now.

But yes, it is the preferred vehicle when going to any mall in Pune with most having tight clearances in the basement parking.

[holysmoke]

Bought my i20 in June of '09. 15000 kms only, in almost 4 years!

But then I bought another car in december, and that one has 57,000 kms in just over 3 years!

[avingodb]

My Nano has done 7500 kms in 20 months. In fact, Nano was purchased knowing well that it was not going to be used much. Thus, I avoided taking a big loan for a bigger car. I am lucky enough to live on the office campus thus ruling out daily drive. I am happy with my decision so far!